As expected, received standard 'respond in 6 - 7 weeks' so LBA is on it's way .....

Hi Malaga I am in a similar position to yourself and Dolly. Claim started in January, MCOL filed in March and due at Brighton Count Court on 21st August. As yet I havn't received a stay letter similar to yours but I am expecting it any day now - the worst scenario would be to be told on the day, having taken time off work to attend. In contrast, I got a full settlement for my daughter in July just a few days after filing MCOL - definitely very unfair!

Hello Dolly I'm due in on 21st August and I filed on 23rd March ... well and truly shocking, legal wheels turn at a snail's pace. I'm still expecting either the court or [problem] to me the case has been stayed before the court date arrives.

Hi Empowered Go for it! PPI is reallly bad news all round. It's normally suck on by default hoping you won't notice.I cancelled all of mine a few years ago when I realised what a big con it was. Brett Brett

Definitely unfair Dolly! Comforting to know I'm not the only one twiddling my thumbs for 6 months waiting for some action from [problem]/Lloyds. Incidently, [problem] are based in my home town and are only a short stroll away from the court ,so I wouldn't be at all surprised if they send their junior tea boy down with the stay order on judgement day just to rub salt into the wound. Their offices are hidden anonymously within a Lloyds building, fittingly on the foor above Lloyds 'Customer Debt Recovery'. Unfortunately, intimidating Lloyds security prevents me from personally bashing at their door to elicit some form of positive response ....

With the usual inefficiency of [problem], they have just informed me that they sent a letter on 11th July, caving to a full settlement including interest and fees of £740 on my claim on behalf of my daughter. The offer was apparently made a few days after I filed MCOL. The good news is that the offer still stands despite the curved ball thrown by OFT, and I have hastily penned acceptance before they change their mind. The story so far is now: 1) Halifax Bank - Charges £4200, offered £2500 after prelim, full settlement before LBA 2) Halifax Credit Card - Charges £600, offered £300 after prelim, full settlement after LBA 3) MBNA Credit Card - Charges £810, offered £390 after prelim, full settlement after LBA 4) Lloyds TSB Bank (Daughter) - Charges £520, no offers, full settlement inc interest and fees of £740 after MCOL 5) Lloyds TSB Bank (Me) - Charges £2860, no offers, full settlement of £4000 inc interest and fees sought in court date in a couple of weeks 6) NatWest - Charges £520, no offers, at LBA I am a bit miffed that my daughter has had a comparatively prompt settlement whist my own MCOL was filed at the end of March and the only correspondence I have received from [problem] was a request for the schedule of charges a couple of months ago (which had already been sent twice to Lloyds!). The only differences between the 2 cases is that I am claiming relatively more and also my account is closed. Ominously for my case, the letter to my daughter states : 'Should you not accept this offer, we will be asking the court to put your claim on hold until the conclusion of the bank's proceedings with the OFT'. The Court were pleased to accept my meaty court bundle (many thanks to moderators Alan & Gary for their invaluable assistance!) last week in preparation for the battle ahead, but it would be nice if somebody could politely inform me of the imminent postponement. I have visions of taking a day off work, donning my best cool legal suit, hanging around court for a few hours waiting for my case, and then being summoned before the beak to be told - Sorry mate, a stay is the order of the day, see you next year. Well, at least the interest is still racking up every day ...

Hi again Lorraine Good luck but be prepared for a long wait! At a guess and based on my experience I would say 4 weeks before the half offer, another 4 weeks before the full offer and then another 4 weeks before they cough up the readies. You could try MCOL/N1 to give them a kick up the backside when they inevitably don't meet the LBA deadline but that could have the reverse effect and slow things up even more. Brett

Hi Battleaxe Any news on the mass non-compliance stuff filed at FSA around May? Brett

Hi Em I might also be tempted to hang in there after LBA as the reason such a high percentage of cases go to court could be mainly down to the 6-8 week response. I did the same on my second Halifax claim, like you I had no funds to file, and it worked with a belated full settlement. The only downside is that you miss out on the 8% interest which can be quite chunky if the majority of the claim goes back a few years. Hi Phill You are getting me worried! Are you on a regular account or advantage gold? It's funny how banks are really slow when it comes to coughing up the readies. Halifax also took a month after the offer date on both my claims to send me a cheque/credit my account.

Thanks Steven My worst fears were confirmed and it looks like I'm in it for the long haul. Let battle commence .... I've fired the first prelim salvo off to Borehamwood towers and I've got the LBA ready for when they inevitably do not respond in 14 days Brett

Hello NatWesters Following an arduous but ultimately successful campaign battling the biggies of my banking/credit card past, it's time to turn my sights on the comparatively smaller fry of banking present in the shape of our old friend NatWest. They welcomed me with open arms when I opened a shiny new account last year but naturally the honeymoon period was short lived and they soon found another way to slap hefty charges on my account at every conceivable opportuity. Before I don my natty claims suit once more and head out west to do battle with the boys in red and blue, I would welcome any comments and advice from anybody who is still stuck in a claim or is flushed with the success of a full settlement. In particular : Do they normally cave in full at the first sight of a prelim or is it a case of no way Jose standard rejections all the way to court? Are their telephones manned by cheeky chappies eager to thrust a large credit into your account or clueless temps/disembodied voices from distant shores chanting the company mantra 'We will respond in 4 weeks' Is their administration in meltdown, groaning under a vast backlog of claims, or have they thrown in some extra resources to give them a slim hope of meeting SAR,prelim,LBA deadlines? Are they prone to close your account at the drop of a charge? This is a significant factor in my case as my credit rating is a few default notices short of an A* rating, making opening a parachute account a little tricky. Thanks in advance for your comments, answers, experiences etc. Brett

Congratulations Mcfadzean! If you or anybody else knows how to get all of these sucessfull MBNA claims moved to 'Other institution successes', please let me know Brett

Hello again Sallly I was in exactly the same position as you, with the initial half offer on credit card having previously had a full settlement on the bank account. I made a specific point in the rejection letter of stating the precedence of a full settlement from their brothers in banking (quoting the account and settlement reference) and expecting similar treatment on the credit card front. This did the trick and they coughed up a full settlement, although admittedly it was some way past the deadline stated in the letter and I was hovering on MCOL. I did the same with MBNA with the same result, saying my son had previously received a full settlement. The 8% interest can be quite chunky if some of the charges go back awhile so my advice would be stick to the deadline, knowing Halifax hav'nt a chance of making it, and go for court!

Animaleyes Yep, the admin is definitely still in meltdown. My own example was they sent the full settlement letter again dated 2 weeks after the original letter. I was hoping they would also stick twice the money in my account but they havn't quite reached that level of incompetance yet. Pennypenny From my own experience, just hang in there a little longer and they will come up with the full goodies ....

Help! Are there any 'other institution' moderators out there who could move my successfull claim thread to 'Successes'? I have tried PMing the usual suspects Blueskies and Barracada aka the Stig without any response so far ..... Thanks Brett

Sally I have been paying Halifax via CCCS for over a year and have heard nothing from Halifax about any reviews. I assumed they dealt directly with CCCS. Good luck in court! Brett

Congratulations again!

Congratulations Animaleyes! Judging by the spate of recent settlements, there finally seems to be a little order emerging from the chaos of Chester Towers. Just received my court date at end of August for my showdown with Lloyds TSB, I'm just praying they settle before then Brett

Hi Sally Just caught up with your own thread. Incidently I am also on a payment arrangement through CCCS which includes the Halifax credit card. Assuming you are keeping up the monthly payment to CCCS, there is no way they should have issued a default notice. Have you had any response to LBA? In my own case, knowing they would never meet the deadline, I gave them a couple of extra weeks and then made a chasing phone call which seemed to do the trick - xtra patience for xtra money!

Good luck Sally! Don't forget, hold out for a full settlement and be prepared for a long wait ..... Brett

Hi again eyes Thanks, I wish I could enjoy the money but unfortunately it's just another credit on a suspended account so I can't even spend it - at least it's a poke in the eye for MBNA! Brett

Hi Animaleyes MBNA certainly try your patience! Let's hope MCOL gives them a kick up the backside, I was on the verge of MCOL with them myself. You need to amend your interest back to the claim date. When I filed MCOL against Lloyds I kept a copy of the charges and interest as of that date because I guessed that I might need to produce that info in the future. Sure enough, Lloyds solicitors asked for it last week even though I had already sent it to the court at the time of the claim a few months ago! Brett

Hi Animaleyes Just in case you havn't seen my latest post '3 down, 1 to go', the boys in Chester Towers have caved in for my full settlement! As an indication of the continued chaos, the offer letter was dated 1st June and the envelope was stamped 11th June - so it's taken 10 days from being at the bottom of the outgoing letters pile to being stuffed in an envelope! Brett

Hi again Empowered Just in case you havn't seen my latest post '3 down, 1 to go', the boys in Chester Towers have also caved in for my full settlement! As an indication of the continued chaos, the offer letter was dated 1st June and the envelope was stamped 11th June - so it's taken 10 days from being at the bottom of the outgoing letters pile to being stuffed in an envelope! Brett

Hi SUFM No, on all of my claims I have taken the simple route and stuck to charges because I couldn't be hassled with calculating interest. Of course, if the claim goes to court (as it very nearly did in this case) I would whack on the standard 8% Brett